BOSTON – Nine individuals have been charged in a coordinated federal crackdown on benefit fraud schemes that exploited stolen identities to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer-funded programs – including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, MassHealth and Social Security benefits. Nearly $9 million in benefit fraud has been uncovered since December 2025.
According to a release from the Massachusetts Department of Justice, the following defendants have been charged over the past nine weeks as part of the United States Attorney’s ongoing enforcement priority to investigate and prosecute benefit fraud involving federal and state assistance programs:
1. Juan Felipe Chalas, 58, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Salem, N.H., was charged with making a false statement in a passport application, aggravated identity theft and unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits;…